On Aug. 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans and killed more than 2,000 people. More than 40,000 took shelter in the cavernous Superdome, and were saved. To the nation, the Dome (along with the Convention Center) became a symbol of despair and destruction. But for those who came to the Superdome, it was a refuge of last resort and, despite horrific conditions inside, sheltered them from the perilous storm. One year after the storm, Times-Picayune reporter Jeff Duncan chronicled the extraordinary experiences of those who lived through those dark days in the Domein a five-part series (see links at right) On Sunday, the transformed stadium will host its first Super Bowl since Katrina. Today, Father Walter Austin, who was serving state chaplain for the Louisiana National Guard, looks back on those unforgettable days in the refuge of last resort.

Walter Austin was one of the unsung heroes of the Superdome
Katrina experience.

"Father Austin was a real rock in the whole process," said
Doug Mouton, who served alongside Austin with the Louisiana National Guard when
the stadium was used as a refuge of last resort during and after the storm in
2005. "It was a profound, life-threatening situation. One woman miscarried in
line. And he'd go out there and just preach and talk and move people around at
will. He's got a mountain of courage."

Austin doesn't see it that way. In his mind, he was only
doing the job he was called and hired to do. And to this day, he feels much of
the experience was sensationalized by the national media.

"By and large, these were good people who were tired and
frustrated," said Austin, 63, a New Orleans native. "They were placed in a
horrid situation and just wanted information."

Austin retired as state chaplain for the Louisiana National
Guard in 2010. He has served as the pastor at Ascension of Our Lord Church in
LaPlace since 2006. He also serves as the chaplain at St. Charles Catholic High
School.

Austin politely declined an invitation to attend the famous
Dome-coming game Sept. 25, 2006, the first game held in the Superdome after
Katrina. He said he simply wasn't motivated to return at that point.

Since then, he's returned to the Superdome just once. At the
invitation of Saints owner Tom Benson, he attended the preseason opener against
Cincinnati in 2009 with a contingent of local clergy and priests.

"I was amazed," Austin said. "It was like a different
building. I didn't recognize it. The place is phenomenal. I was impressed to
see what they've done with it."

Like Mouton, Austin said the Katrina experience presented a
much greater challenge than his overseas military mission to Iraq.

"You can't compare the two," Austin said. "When I was in
Iraq, I knew exactly what I had to do. I knew what my mission was there. I had
the equipment to do my mission. It was doing your job. With Katrina, you were
making it up as you went along. Every time you turned around there was a new
challenge to deal with."

A decorated veteran of both Operation Desert Storm and
Operation Iraqi Freedom, Austin said he rarely thinks about Katrina or his
Superdome experience these days. There is one memory, though, that lingers.

"The smell," he said. "It wasn't repugnant. It was this
horrid, sweet smell. It was horrible. And I'll never forget it."